I'm not sure that his comments about guards hiding away in compartments is either accurate or indeed likely to help the dispute to get resolved. It's almost as if they're trying to antagonise the staff whilst also looking to seem reasonable to the customers.

What surprises me about this is that despite a relatively poorly informed (and amenable) media, limitless supply of pr advice and media onslaught via the government, and a poor public attitude from the union when interviewed, southern still fails to land a knockout blow that turns the majority of commuters against the industrial action and pro southern

His attitude stinks. If he's letting comments like hiding away, rolling back the clock etc slip out in a BBC PR exercise I dread to think what he's like in private discussions with the unions.

"I will design a town in the image of your face. Round the wrinkles of your eyes my footsteps you can trace. We could promenade down infra-nasel depression. The streets of your hands will never feel a recession."

Heard a good interview on The Today programme this morning with one of Southern's functionaries. The gist of the questioning was to press him on why the DOO initiative is so important that it justifies these consequences. There was no compelling or convincing response - just some waffle about investment in new trains.

What gets my own goat is when the official response is that 'customers have told us' that they want the guard's role re-defined. I'm guessing that if Southern customers were surveyed they'd say (to as near 100% as dammit) that they'd rather have trains that turned up, preferably on time i.e. no strikes.

It's come down to an arm wrestle between Southern and the unions and regardless of the rights and wrongs Southern have simply lost - surely?

Interesting no dft rep (although huw merrimen did a good job of selling the govt line)
Interesting no aslef rep
Interesting that it was 3 v 1 on the panel blaming the union whilst audience seem more evenly split?
Union rep needs to work harder on presentation although must be clearly difficult to keep your cool when guy next to you is clearly lying (as was found out when union rep did get the opportunity to challenge back on something said, which on didn't happen often enough in the edited bits shown)
Clearly wouldn't trust lynch or Horton as far as I could throw them. Most sensible comments came from audience esp ex staff.
Why do media still seem to think southern issues are all to do with industrial action?

No you're right, it isn't accurate. Furthermore and this needs spreading - the reason Southern gave for this whole change was that the OBS would be able to concentrate on helping passengers and not worry about being at the doors at each station. However, it is a FACT that the OBS (assuming the train has one which is less and less likely) now HAS to step out onto the platform at each station, check that no one needs assistance before the driver can close the doors thus nullifying Southern's stated aim (not that anyone believed them). They may as well just shut the doors safely whilst they are at it.
Oh and another wheelchair passenger apparently left behind at Pevensey and Westham on Saturday night as no OBS.

I think the language used 'hiding in compartments' is inflammatory but saying this is not wholly accurate is not true. During this dispute I have paid a lot more attention to guards behaviour and I have to say that there are a fairly significant number of guards who do simply occupy the area close to the door mechanism for large parts of the journey.

A technical question but can the doors only be operated from a single location on the train? I only ask as this would explain why a guard may feel the need to stay close to the switch?